Lose weight without counting calories
DEAR DOCTOR: Is it true that just cutting back on refined sugar, refined grains and highly processed foods can lead to weight loss without cutting calories? If so, count me in. But I could eat a whole lot of whole grains and vegetables before being satisfied. That’s still a lot of calories.
DEAR READER: The results of a clinical trial published earlier this year in the Journal of the American Medical Association are extremely interesting. Much of the media coverage trumpeted the idea that (at last!) here’s a diet where you lose weight without counting calories.
A team of researchers working in partnership with the National Institutes of Health studied 600 overweight people over the course of a year as they followed eating programs consisting of only high-quality whole foods and beverages. That means heavy on fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, healthful fats, whole grains and legumes, and few or no highly processed foods. Not only are those loaded with salt, fat, sugars and highly refined carbohydrates, but they’ve been repeatedly linked to obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and various cancers.
The actual point of the study was whether an individual’s genetic makeup or insulin metabolism can predict weight loss or health outcomes. The conclusion was that neither appeared to be predictors of weight loss. What got the most ink was that so many participants lost weight without counting calories, 11.7 to 13 pounds on average, and saw drops in waistline measurements, body fat percentage, blood pressure and fasting levels of insulin and glucose.
It appears that by quitting junk foods in favor of a diet of high-quality whole foods, people in the study naturally ate fewer calories without trying to cut back. The fact that all of those health markers also moved in a positive direction speaks volumes for the benefits of this type of eating. For all the eating plans that have emerged over the decades, it always comes back to the basics: a balanced diet of whole foods, lean meats, good oils and plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables.
Elizabeth Ko, M.D., is an internist and assistant professor of medicine at UCLA Health.